Hong Kong-Swedish writer detained by China in 2015
In this Chinese name, the family name is Gui (surname).
Gui Minhai
Born
(1964-05-05) 5 May 1964 (age 60)
Ningbo, Zhejiang, China
Nationality
Swedish
Other names
Michael Gui
Ah Hai
Alma mater
Peking University (bachelor 1985)
University of Gothenburg (MA 1990, PhD 1996)[1]
Occupations
Book publisher
writer
Years active
2006–present
Chinese name
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu Pinyin
Guì Mínhǎi
Yue: Cantonese
Yale Romanization
gwái man hōi
Jyutping
gwai3 man4 hoi2
Website
freeguiminhai.org
Gui Minhai (Chinese: 桂民海; pinyin: Guì Mínhǎi, formerly 桂敏海; Guì Mǐnhǎi;[2][3][4] born 5 May 1964[1]), also known as Michael Gui,[5] is a Hong Kong-Swedish book publisher and writer. He is an author of many books related to Chinese politics and Chinese political figures; Gui authored around 200 books during his ten-year career under the pen-name Ah Hai (阿海) and is one of three shareholders of Causeway Bay Books in Hong Kong.
Gui went missing in Thailand in late 2015, one of five men who vanished in a string of incidents known as the Causeway Bay Books disappearances. The case ignited fears locally and in Britain over the collapse of "one country, two systems", over the possibility that people could be subject to rendition from Hong Kong and from other countries by Chinese law enforcement.[6][7] The Chinese government had been silent about holding him in custody for three months, at which point a controversial video confession was broadcast on mainland media.[8] In it, Gui said that he had returned to mainland China and surrendered to the authorities of his own volition; he appeared to indicate that he was prepared to follow the course of justice in China, while waiving protection as a Swedish citizen.[8][9][10] Gui's case has severely strained the relations between Sweden and China.[11]
Many observers expressed doubts about the sincerity and credibility of Gui's confession.[12][13][14][15]The Washington Post described the narrative as "messy and incoherent, blending possible fact with what seems like outright fiction".[16][17] Chinese state media said in late February 2016 that Gui was being held for "illegal business operations". He is alleged to have knowingly distributed books not approved by China's press and publication authority since October 2014.[18] Although Gui was released from detention in October 2017, he was once again abducted by suspected state security agents – a group of men in plain clothes – in January 2018 while on his way to Beijing for a medical visit.[19] Shortly afterwards, while under detention for breaking unspecified laws, he once again confessed, denouncing Swedish politicians for instigating him to leave the country and for "using me as chess piece".[20] Gui Minhai is still under detention in China as of December 2019,[21] and was sentenced in February 2020 to 10 years' imprisonment for "illegally providing intelligence overseas".[22][23]
Lee Bo, Gui's Hong Kong-based business partner, denied that Gui was on a "political mission against the Communist party". Instead likening him as mostly a businessman where publishing books was a means of earning money rather than ideology. “In his books there is a lot of guessing also about political gossip rather than actual fact.”
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^"Gothenburg axes twin city agreement with Shanghai as Sweden closes all Confucius Institutes". 24 April 2020. Archived from the original on 27 April 2021. Retrieved 24 April 2020.
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^"Sweden 'using me like chess piece', says detained publisher Gui Minhai in government-arranged interview". South China Morning Post. 9 February 2018. Archived from the original on 5 September 2018. Retrieved 5 September 2018.
^"Former Swedish ambassador to China indicted over meetings to discuss Hong Kong bookseller". South China Morning Post. 9 December 2019. Archived from the original on 12 December 2019. Retrieved 12 December 2019.
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GuiMinhai (Chinese: 桂民海; pinyin: GuìMínhǎi, formerly 桂敏海; GuìMǐnhǎi; born 5 May 1964), also known as Michael Gui, is a Hong Kong-Swedish book publisher...
been taken into custody in relation to an old traffic case involving GuiMinhai. While response to the October disappearances had been muted, perhaps...
Gui (1914–2010), Italian politician GuiMinhai (born 1964), Chinese–born Swedish scholar and publisher Vittorio Gui (1885–1975), Italian composer Gui...
wine, but for our enemies we got shotguns", over the decision to award GuiMinhai with the Tucholsky Prize. All eight major Swedish political parties condemned...
statement concerning the CCP's actions with GuiMinhai, stating that “China's treatment of publisher GuiMinhai — a story of abduction, detention, and now...
result of Swedish national GuiMinhai being imprisoned for 10 years, and also comments by China's ambassador to Sweden, Gui Congyou, who threatened Sweden...
resigned. In 2018 the South China Morning Post published an interview with GuiMinhai, who was detained in China at the time. This raised concerns about the...
wine, but for our enemies we got shotguns” over the decision to award GuiMinhai with the Tucholsky Prize. All eight major Swedish political parties have...
worker and human rights activist. The owners of Causeway Bay Books – GuiMinhai and Lam Wing-kee – who were abducted by state security agents operating...
its manager. From September 2014, the company had three shareholders: GuiMinhai (34%), Sophie Choi (34%) and Lui Bo (32%). According to industry sources...
privacy and impartiality rules. "We found the individuals (Simon Cheng and GuiMinhai) concerned were unfairly treated and had their privacy unwarrantably infringed...
of the 2000 Nobel Prize in Literature Gao Yu (journalist) Gao Zhisheng GuiMinhai, publisher and writer of books on Chinese politics Guo Wengui, also known...
Hong Kong after the Causeway Bay Books disappearances, one of whom was GuiMinhai, his friend since the 1980s. 主題與變奏, 貝嶺, 黎明文化事業股份有限公司, 1994, ISBN 978-957-16-0334-6...
Chinese Communist Party leadership and awarded GuiMinhai the PEN Tucholsky prize in absentia. Mr Gui, a Chinese-born Swedish citizen had published poetry...
that the Chinese authorities in 2015 treating the case of the writer GuiMinhai as a Chinese national nevertheless his additional Swedish citizenship...
Retrieved 5 June 2021. Moore, Matthew (28 January 2019). "Daughter of GuiMinhai demands ofcom inquiry after China TV shows 'forced confessions'". The...
Kong protestors. Other dissidents targeted by the bot network included GuiMinhai and Yu Wensheng as well as PLA veterans. In another report from the South...
Yaroshenko [et; ru; uk] 2008 Liberia United States Dirar Abu Seesi 2011 Ukraine Israel GuiMinhai 2015 Thailand China Trịnh Xuân Thanh 2017 Germany Vietnam...
conscience (he is now joined by kidnapped Swedish citizen and publicist GuiMinhai). As of 2023, he is considered to be one of the world's longest continuously...
of his intimate life. GuiMinhai, the first man to disappear, was ostensibly set free on 17 October 2017. On 19 January 2018, Gui was pulled from the train...
privacy and impartiality rules. “We found the individuals (Simon Cheng and GuiMinhai) concerned were unfairly treated and had their privacy unwarrantably infringed...
disappeared as part of the Causeway Bay Books disappearances. The five men: GuiMinhai, Lee Bo, Lui Bo, Cheung Jiping and Lam Wing-kee were allegedly kidnapped...